Back at One
by Asagi Tsuki
Summary: The five things they realize and do, before going through them all over again


**Back at One**

By: Asagi Tsuki

Pairing: PrUK

Warning: AU, OOCness (I can't be sure of this one), and forgive my lack of language diversity (I can only speak American English -_-;;;;)

Disclaimer: I don't own Axis Powers Hetalia or the song

A/N: I find it easier to write a one-shot for the Hetalia fandom. Probably because PrUk would almost always be my OTP. I like Arthur's sometimes misunderstood, tsundere character, and Gilbert's cheeky personality. Although I believe he could be charming if he wanted to, and that's why my Gilbert is charming at some points of the story :D

Anyway, this is inspired by a song titled Back at One by Brian McKnight. A couple of my friends and I were going for a karaoke night and one of them picked this song. I fell in love with the chorus, and here I am with another one-shot :D I love it when my muse sticks around long enough for me to think about what I want to write

I always refer to the nations with their human names so that this can be an AU where they are all humans if you want them to be :D I like to be vague :P

So, enough babbling, hope you'll enjoy this. If you do, please leave a review, because I'm a comment whore :P and I truly do appreciate all the reviews I got for my previous fic titled I Love You :D I love you guys~ :3

**If I Ever Think I'm Done**

_One, you're like a dream come true_

He had to admit that he had a weird kind of relationship with Alfred. They both claimed to be awesome all the time and it created some sort of rivalry but also friendship between them. He also had to admit that being with him for long had started to rub some of his hero complex off to him.

That was why he sometimes found himself thinking whether he would find his damsel in distress—a cute girl who is preferably not fragile or weak, just in need of help and encouragement—some loving too. He wanted his damsel to be a strong woman on the brink of breakdown because she had been strong for too long, and he'd come in to save the day, lifting her back up with words of encouragement and reassurance.

When he found himself consoling a crying Arthur after a particularly harsh argument with Alfred, he wondered if he had found his damsel in distress.

_Two, just wanna be with you_

He didn't know when exactly it started, but he found it a habit to go out for coffee with Gilbert after meetings with the others, especially the long and taxing ones. He really couldn't protest, because Gilbert tend to shut up while drinking his coffee and he enjoyed his tea. Alfred didn't have to know that he ordered tea at the coffee shop, because the look on his face whenever he heard Arthur was going out for coffee was comical.

It was indeed a strange tradition of theirs, but neither was willing to break it. They would go their own ways right after the meeting, but about thirty minutes later would turn up at the coffee shop, save a seat for the other and enjoy their drinks. Most of the time they were silent, lost in their own thoughts, and only occasionally would they have snippets of conversation—not long enough to be called a proper conversation, but not short enough to feel awkward.

Then, when they were finished, they would just stare at each other until they come to a mutual agreement of leaving the shop.

Ludwig asked Gilbert once why he kept going there if they were only going to spend their time in silence. He remembered Francis asking him the same thing. He also remembered that their answers were mostly the same.

They just wanted to be with the other.

_Three, girl it's plain to see that you're the only one for me_

When the news that he had rejected Elizaveta's confession became the hottest gossip at the meetings, Arthur was the first to confront him about it.

He had expressed his belief that the two liked each other, and Gilbert had just stared at him like he had grown another head. Arthur asked what that look was supposed to mean, and he simply shook his head and asked him if it wasn't obvious that he liked Arthur and no one else.

The blunt confession had startled the blond man, and although Arthur said right out that he couldn't give him an answer straight away, he didn't mind. He was willing to wait, because he knew that Arthur was worth waiting for.

_Four, repeat steps one through three_

After the confrontation, he had thought about it long and hard. In fact, every free time he had that he didn't spend on preparing for next meetings or working on his needlework was spent thinking about what Gilbert had said.

He had long since thought that there was no one who could love him. He found himself not lovable at all, and he had thought that Gilbert was lying. However, the serious look he had on his usually grinning face made him know that he wasn't fooling around. He might be a cheeky person, but he never went as far as to play with others' feelings.

He thought about Gilbert's qualities. What is it about the man that ticked him off, or made him want to spend the rest of his life with him. Then he would list all of his own qualities, see if Gilbert deserved someone better.

That night, he fell asleep with three conclusions: Gilbert was a dream come true—a person he didn't mind spending his time with who could see past his masks to the person beneath; he felt like meeting up with him again just for the sake of being with him even if they didn't do anything at all; and clearly, if Gilbert thought that he was the one for him, then he could think the same, because he was also starting to believe that Gilbert was the one for him.

_Five, make you fall in love with me_

Courtship was not an art Gilbert was familiar with. In fact, even Ludwig criticised his art of courtship and Feliciano kept telling him he did it wrong.

He was never one for traditional romance. He liked to be different. That was why he sent a cactus to Arthur's office instead of the customary bouquet of roses. It was also why he took Arthur out to a home-made burger diner instead of a fine dining restaurant—at least it had made him more tolerant of burgers.

On Christmas day, he had gotten Arthur a unicorn ornament, and on Valentine's Day, he had gotten Arthur a tea set. They were hardly the type of gifts people would give to the women they were wooing.

Then again, Arthur wasn't a woman, and he was not normal.

When Arthur came to him with the answer he had been waiting for, he simply stuck his tongue out at Ludwig and told him there was nothing wrong with his art of courtship.

_If ever I believe my work is done_

Years later, he found that he was still hopelessly in love with Gilbert, although there were times when he wanted nothing more than to drown the man in Gilbird's poo, no matter how heartless it seemed.

He once asked how Gilbert could put up with him even when he was having his moments of irrationality, and he simply smiled and showed him a list he made a long time ago—a list of five things. He wondered why Gilbert still kept it since he had accomplished all five of them, apparently.

The answer Gilbert gave him made him fall in love with the man even more, if that was even possible.

_If ever I believe my work is done, then I'll start back at one_

**I'll Start Back at One**

If you enjoy it, please do leave a review :D I deliberately keep switching PoV at each part of lyrics to keep it varied... slightly :P

Also, if you notice, I have crossed out any convo from this fic, so this fic is full narrative, not dialogue. I tried inserting a couple of lines in, but it felt strange so I took them out again :D how do you like this format?


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